Insulated Foam Panel Forms

ABSTRACT

A corner bracket for modular foam forms for poured concrete walls includes an outer, horizontal strap with generally vertical strips attached thereto or molded therewith for encapsulation in the outside and optionally the inside foam panels of such a form.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This international application is derived from, claims priority to andincorporates by reference U.S. provisional application Ser. No.60/644,241, filed Jan. 14, 2005, entitled INSULATED FOAM PANEL FORMS

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In a principal aspect the present invention relates to a device termed astrut, connector, tie, bracket member or bracket, and which is used incombination with spaced, insulating foam, form panels, to therebyprovide a mold or form for concrete and cement wall construction. Inparticular, the bracket is associated with formation of insulating foam,corner forms.

The use of modular insulating foam forms for concrete or cement wallconstruction is disclosed in various prior art patents and use of suchforms is commonly practiced in the construction industry. Among theprior art patents depicting such forms and their use are the following:

U.S. Pat. No. Patentee Date of Patent Title 4,884,382 Horobin Dec. 5,1989 Modular Building-Block Form 5,060,446 Beliveau Oct. 29, 1991Insulating Wall Panel 5,390,459 Mensen Feb. 21, 1995 Concrete Form Walls5,896,714 Cymbala Apr. 27, 1999 Insulating Concrete et al. Form System6,230,462 Beliveau May 15, 2001 Concrete Wall Form and ConnectorsTherefor 6,820,384 B1 Pfeiffer Nov. 23, 2004 Prefabricated Foam BlockConcrete Forms and Ties Molded Therein

Modular foam forms generally comprise first and second, parallel,spaced, modular sized, plastic foam or polystyrene foam wall panels. Thespaced foam wall panels are connected by cross members termed brackets.Brackets are typically made from molded, rigid plastic materials. Thebrackets are often referred to as struts, ties or connectors. The foamedwall panel forms are made in modular sizes and assembled in buildingblock fashion to define a form for a building or foundation wall.Reinforcing bars (rebars) are typically placed on the ties or bracketsthat connect or join the foam panels defining the concrete form so thatwhen concrete or cement is poured into the space between the foampanels, the rebars will effectively reinforce the wall. Various designsof the panels and the connectors or brackets which join or tie thepanels together are depicted in the prior art. The design of panels andthe design of the brackets or connectors or ties is highly varied.

A particularly challenging design problem associated with foam panelforms is related to the corners of such forms. Appropriately positioningof foam material in combination with ties or brackets in a manner whichenables and facilitates the construction of the corners of a buildingwall is particularly vexing. Prior art patents suggest various cornerwall form constructions including the following:

U.S. Pat. No. Patentee Date of Patent Title 4,765,109 Boeshart Aug. 23,1988 Adjustable Tie 4,916,879 Boeshart Apr. 17, 1990 Corner Tie5,658,483 Boeshart Aug. 19, 1997 Corner Joint Tie 5,782,050 BoeshartJul. 21, 1998 Two-Piece Corner Tie 6,224,631 Kohrs May 1, 2001Intervertebral Implant with Reduced Contact Area and Method 6,293,067Meendering Sep. 25, 2001 Tie for Forms for Poured Concrete 6,352,235Cizek Mar. 5, 2002 Combination Bottle Hook and Wrench 6,691,481 SchmidtFeb. 17, 2004 Corner Form for Modular Insulating Concrete Form System

The present invention is directed to improved designs of molded plasticbrackets, ties or connectors which are especially useful in combinationwith spaced foam panels to define corner forms.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Briefly, the present invention comprises a corner bracket or tie whichincludes a first generally horizontal assembly member having anintermediate or generally, but angled central, corner section with aprojecting wing extension extending laterally in generally oppositedirections from each side of the intermediate or central, cornersection. An integral bracing element typically connects the wingextensions to fix and maintain a desired corner angle between theprojecting wing extensions. The wing extensions thus may define andinclude an angle, for example, of 90°, 60°, 45° or some other includedangle that defines or conforms to the angle of the corner wall formincorporating the bracket. In addition to the horizontal assemblymember, there is included at least one vertical plate member which isattached to or is attachable to the horizontal assembly member and whichis designed to be embedded or included within at least one of the foampanels forming a corner wall form. The vertical plate member or membersare thus embedded in the corner foam panel in a manner which positionsthem for cooperation with fasteners that are used to attach variousmaterials such as siding, wallboard, etc, to the corner foam panels.Such attachment is particularly desirable at corners of such foam forms,and the present invention is especially useful because it provides adesign which positions generally vertical plate members adjacent or atthe corners of an insulated foam wall form. The vertical plate membersare analogous to furring strips.

The corner brackets or ties of the invention are generally at leastpartially encapsulated into opposed, spaced foam panels which intersector are molded to define a corner, modular, foam panel form. Oneembodiment of the bracket is designed for combination with an outsidefoam corner panel and a spaced inside foam corner panel, and isconstructed to be at least partially embedded in both the inside andoutside foam panels. Another embodiment of the corner bracket isdesigned to be at least partially embedded in an outside corner foampanel and to project into the space between an outside corner foam paneland a spaced, inside corner foam panel.

The ties or brackets of the invention thus function to positiongenerally vertical plate members at or adjacent the outside cornerinsulated foam panel and further optional function to connect an outsidecorner insulating foam panel to an inside corner foam panel. Also in apreferred embodiment, the corner bracket is comprised of separateelements including (1) a horizontal assembly which defines, or iscompatible with, the desired angular relationship of the insulatingcorner foam panels, and (2) separate, generally vertical plate memberswhich may be slidably inserted into the horizontal corner assembly.

As another feature of the invention, the vertical plate members may bemolded as a single vertical element, or multiple, spaced verticalelements joined by cross members. The cross member or members may berigid or may include an adjustable (living hinge) feature. Two or morevertical elements may be provided for combination with a singlehorizontal corner assembly. The vertical elements may be slidablypositioned through vertical slots in the horizontal corner assembly andretained by a bayonet connection or stops in the form of lugs.

Thus, it is an object of the invention to provide a multiple variety ofcorner bracket constructions that may be used in combination with a pairof spaced, insulated foam panels to construct an insulated concrete wallcorner form.

Another object is to provide a bracket for a corner form which includesone or more vertical plate members or strips adjacent the insulated,outside foam panel.

A further object is to provide a corner bracket and foam panel wallconstruction form which is rugged, reasonably priced, and easy toincorporate with insulated wall panel forms.

These and other objects, advantages and features are set forth in thefollowing description and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

In the detailed description which follows, reference will be made to thedrawing comprised of the following figures:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of an insulated wall form comprised ofmodular elements including straight wall panel forms and corner forms;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the wall forms of the type depicted in FIG.1;

FIG. 3 is an isometric view of a corner bracket assembly or cornerbracket for a corner wall form;

FIG. 4 is another isometric view of the corner bracket of FIG. 3 whichmay be employed in the creation of a modular, insulated corner wall formof the type depicted in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of the corner bracket depicted in FIG.3 taken substantially along the line 5-5;

FIG. 6 is an isometric view of the horizontal assembly member or platewhich is included as an element of the bracket of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a side view of the corner bracket depicted in FIG. 5 viewed inthe direction of the arrow in FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the corner bracket depicted in FIG. 5 asincorporated in spaced foam panels to provide a modular corner wallform;

FIG. 9 is an isometric view of an alternative construction of a cornerbracket designed for a 45° corner wall form;

FIG. 10 is a top plan view depicting the corner bracket of FIG. 9 asincorporated in spaced foam panels to provide a modular, insulatedcorner wall form;

FIG. 11 is an isometric view of the construction of FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is an isometric view of a corner bracket construction includingtwo connected vertical plate members or strips;

FIG. 13 is an isometric view of a corner bracket incorporating aconnected vertical strip in combination with single vertical strips orplate members;

FIG. 14 is an isometric view of a corner bracket incorporating more thantwo connected vertical strips or plate members; and

FIG. 15 is an isometric view of a corner bracket for a right anglecorner, including first and second vertical plate members.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is depicted an assembled array ofmodular, foam panel forms which are utilized, in combination, to providea form for casting or pouring of a concrete building wall, for example.The prior art patents referenced above generally depict the manner ofconstruction and use of such modular foam forms. Briefly, the modularforms 21 are generally comprised of modular sized, first and secondpanels 20 and 22 which are formed from a plastic foam material such aspolystyrene. The panels 20, 22 are maintained in spaced, typicallyparallel, connected relationship one with respect to the other by meansof brackets, connectors, struts, ties or the like 24. The number andspacing of the brackets 24 may be varied. For modular foam forms 21which are designed for straight line sections of a wall, six to eightconnectors or brackets 24 may, for example, comprise cross linkingmembers extending between the generally parallel spaced, insulatingpanels 20 and 22. Such parallel or straight modular wall sections orforms, such as section 21, will thus, in combination, define a straightwall form. Steel reinforcing bars (rebars) 25 may be positioned on thebrackets 24, and concrete or cement may be placed in the region betweenthe foam panels 20 and 22 to encapsulate the reinforcing bars 25 as wellas the brackets 24. The materials forming the panels 20 and 22 providean insulating feature as well as a form 21.

The present invention relates to the construction of corner forms andbrackets such as the right angle corner form 32 in FIG. 1 for a cornerincorporating a corner bracket 30. Multiple corner forms 32 as well asthe straight panel forms 21 may thus be assembled in variouscombinations to create a complex, large form for pouring of a concretewall. Obtuse corner forms, such as obtuse corner form 28, may beconstructed having an angular relationship other than 90°. For example,the form 28 defines an obtuse angle corner form including an angularinside insulating foam panel 33 and an outside insulating foam panel 38.Panels 33, 35 are joined by straight ties or connectors 24 and a moldedplastic corner bracket 102 as described hereinafter. Acute angle as wellas right angle forms may be made in the practice of the invention.

FIGS. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 relate particularly to the corner bracket 30which is constructed and designed for use in the formation of a 90°angle or right angle corner form 32. FIGS. 9, 10 and 11 illustrate analternative corner bracket construction utilized to provide or with a135° angle corner form. The invention is not limited to any particularangular relationship of the panel walls of a modular corner foam form,however, and thus the brackets described may be designed to be used fora wide variety of angular corner relationships.

Referring to FIGS. 3-8, the right angle corner bracket embodiment of theinvention includes a first generally horizontal assembly member 40. Theassembly member 40 includes a generally intermediate corner or angledefining section or portion 42, a first lateral wing extension 44extending from the intermediate section 42 in one direction and a secondlateral wing extension 46 extending from the intermediate section 42 ina generally distinct direction. The included angle between the wingextensions 44 and 46 is approximately 90°. The bracket assembly member40 further includes a rigid cross brace member 48 connected with asecond rigid cross brace member 50. The cross brace members 48 and 50join together at a juncture 52. A bisecting reinforcing brace 54 extendsgenerally from the apex of the intermediate section 42 and generallybisects the angle between the wing extensions 44 and 46. The brace 54extends outwardly from the intermediate section a distance which enablesinsertion of distal end 56 of the brace 54 into an inside foam panelwall such as depicted in FIG. 8 as the foam panel wall 60. Thus,referring to FIG. 8, an outer right angle foam panel wall 62encapsulates the wing extensions 44 and 46 with the brace 54 extendingthrough the space between the panels 60 and 62 to be encapsulated andincluded within the inside molded corner foam panel 60 during themolding operation of the corner foam form 32. Straight ties 24 may alsobe molded into the corner forms extending between parallel sections ofthe panels 60, 62. Note the straight ties 24 include generally verticalstrips or plate members 79. These plate members 79 act as furring stripsfor attachment of siding, etc. to the panels.

The wing extensions 44 and 46 each include first and second verticaltracks or slots 64 and 66; 68 and 70 respectively on the inside face ofthe wing extensions 44 and 46. These slots 64, 66, 68 and 70 receivebayonet shaped, generally vertical, plate members or strips which slideinto the slots 64, 66, 68 and 70 as depicted, for example, in FIG. 7 aswell as in FIGS. 3 and 4. Thus, the 90° corner bracket further includesa series of plate members 72, 74, 76 and 78 which are arrayed in agenerally vertical parallel manner with respect to one another and withrespect to the horizontal assembly member 40. Each of the plate members72, 74, 76 and 78 has a T-shaped cross section in a preferred embodimentand is slidably received respectively the compatibly shaped slots 64,66, 68 and 70 as previously described. The bayonet shaped plate members72, 74, 76 and 78 include a stop panel or tab 80 which limits thesliding movement into the respective slots and further include detentprojections such as the detent projection 84 in FIG. 7 which limits themovement of a plate member 74 once it is inserted into an appropriateslot 66, by way of example. In this manner, the plate members, such asthe plate member 74, are held in a generally fixed or locked positiononce inserted into their respective slots, such as slot 66. Other meanssuch as clamps, etc. may be utilized in place of the described slots ortracks to function to connect and hold plates in position for the cornerbracket.

In the preferred embodiment, the pairs of vertical plate members 72 and74 are interconnected one with respect to the other through a molded,flexible horizontal bridge or connecting hinge section 90 and 92. Thatis, the generally rigid plate members 72, 74, are made from a moldedplastic material and are designed to be connected one to the other bymeans of a flexible linkage or hinge 90 and 92. Once inserted, the platemembers 72 and 74 will remain rigidly in place mounted on the wingextension 44. A detent or wedge projection 84 may be provided on one orboth sides of the plate member, for example, the plate member 72. Platessuch as the plate 76 may include projecting stops or studs 81 asdepicted, for example, in FIG. 3. In other words, various means may beutilized to generally lock the vertical plates 72, 74, 76, 78 inposition in the assembled combination with the generally horizontalassembly member 40 of the corner bracket.

FIG. 8 also illustrates the manner in which a 90° corner bracket isencapsulated within foam panels 60, 62 defining the inside face andoutside face of a modular corner mold form wherein the foam panel walls60, 62 are defined by integrally molded right angle foam walls. Notethat the horizontal assembly members are typically encapsulated withinthe foam material as are the vertical brackets or vertical plate members72 and 74. With the construction of the invention, the vertical platemembers 72 and 74 may be positioned closely adjacent a corner; such as acorner 75 of a mold form. Positioning the vertical plate members, asdescribed, enables the attachment of wall board by fasteners, forexample, tightly to the region adjacent the corner of the mold form.

That is, typically the straight ties 24 for connecting opposed panelwalls 60 and 62; includes a vertical plate member 79 which is generallyencapsulated within foam material 62. The plate 79 thus serves as ameans to receive fasteners for attaching wallboard, siding, or the like,to the foam panel 62. In like fashion the plates 72, 74 have a similarfunction. This resolves a problem of prior art corner constructions thatdid not include a vertical plate member positioned near a corner, suchas a corner 75. With the present invention, the positioning of a platemember, such as the plate member 72 or the plate member 74 at the corner75 enhances the ability to construct and attach wallboard or the like tothe corner of a foam form wall.

FIGS. 9-11 depict an alternative embodiment of the invention designed,by way of example, for use with a 135° corner section, such as thecorner section 100 in FIG. 10. The corner modular section 100 includes acorner bracket 102 again comprised of a horizontal assembly member 104having at least one, and in the embodiment depicted two vertical slots106 and 108, for receipt of the vertical plate members 110 and 112,respectively. The vertical plate members 110 and 112 are substantiallyidentical to the vertical plate members 72, 74 affixed to a wingextension for the 90° corner construction. However; because the web orconnecting portion 114 for the vertical plate members 110 and 112, aswell as the connecting section 116 are flexible the vertical platemembers 110 and 112 may be easily inserted and positioned in combinationwith the horizontal assembly member 102 to bridge the corner angle.

The horizontal assembly member 102 of this embodiment includes aforeshortened brace or extension 120 which generally bisects the angledefined by the wing extensions 104 and 107. The brace 120 extends onlypartially between the foam corner panels 100 and 101. FIG. 11 is anisometric view of the obtuse angle corner construction of FIG. 10incorporating a corner bracket as depicted in FIG. 9. It will also beobserved that the modular corner form foam panels 100, 101 includes somestraight side connectors or ties such as the connector 130 extendingbetween the panels 100 and 101.

FIGS. 12, 13 and 14 illustrate variations of the combination of plateconstructions in combination with various horizontal corner assemblies.Thus, a single plate 150 may be utilized, as in FIG. 13. Alternatively,two spaced plates 152, 154 rigidly connected by a horizontal bridgesection 156 with a flexible hinge portion 152 may be used.Alternatively, more than two plates may be connected by a living hingeand/or a rigid hinge, such as hinge 166 in FIG. 14. Thus, three or fourplates or strips 158, 160, 162 and 163 are appropriately spaced by arigid bridge section 164 and a flexible hinge bridge section 166 in FIG.14.

Note that the preferred embodiment of the plate construction having twoor more vertical plates, two or more horizontal bridging sections, suchas sections 164, 172 are used to insure stability of the assembly. Thevertical rib in FIG. 9 also enhances structural integrity of the plateconstruction.

FIG. 15 illustrates yet another variation of the plate and bracketconstruction in combination to provide a corner assembly for a foampanel construction. The corner assembly includes a generally horizontal,molded corner 200 having a first horizontal run 210 and a secondhorizontal run 212 molded at a right angle thereto and joined thereto bya bracket 214. The bracket 214 includes a bisecting, planar member 216extending from the apex defined by the horizontal runs 210 and 212. Theinside of each run 210 and 212 includes a molded slot 218 and 220,respectively, adapted to receive vertical sliding plate members 222 and224, respectively. Thus, as depicted in FIG. 15, the vertical platemembers 222 and 224 are positioned so as to comprise furring type stripsin the plastic or molded forms.

Other variations combining the concepts disclosed herein may beutilized. The vertical strips 222 and 224 may, for example, beintegrally molded with the corner forms. The length and width of thevertical plates or strips 222 and 224 may be modified or varied. Theconfiguration, or shape, of the vertical strips or plates 222 and 224may be varied. The cross sectional configuration of the vertical stripsmay also be varied.

Numerous variations of the described embodiments may be adapted toprovide a corner bracket having a defined angle and including strips ofdesired width and height and spacing. Thus, while there has been setforth preferred embodiments of the invention, it is to be understoodthat the invention is limited only by the following claims andequivalents thereof.

1. A corner bracket for use in combination with an insulating foam formfor concrete and cement wall construction, said corner bracketcomprising: a first generally horizontal assembly member including agenerally intermediate section having first and second wing extensionsprojecting laterally from each side of the intermediate section, saidwing extensions forming an included angle; said assembly memberincluding a bracing element for maintaining the first and second wingextensions substantially at the included angle; and at least oneseparate, generally vertical, plate member attached or attachable to atleast one wing extension of the assembly member and extendingsubstantially vertically with respect to the assembly member to comprisea reinforcing and attachment element upon at least partial encapsulationin a foam material.
 2. The bracket of claim 1 wherein the assemblymember comprises first and second wing extensions substantially at 90°to each other.
 3. The bracket of claim 1 further including a verticalplate member attachable to each wing extension.
 4. The bracket of claim1 wherein the vertical plate member is slidably attached to the wingextension.
 5. The bracket of claim 1 wherein the vertical plate memberincludes a detent and stop mechanism for retaining the vertical platemember attached to the wing extension.
 6. The bracket of claim 1 furtherincluding at least one generally horizontal bracket extension within theincluded angle defined by the first and second wing extensions.
 7. Thebracket of claim 1 further including at least one bracket extensionwithin the included angle defined by the first and second wingextensions and generally bisecting the angle.
 8. The bracket of claim 1further including at least one bracket extension within the includedangle defined by the first and second wing extensions and generallyextending from an intersection of the first and second wing extensionsand a distance sufficient to enable encapsulation of the wing extensionsand a distal end of the bracket extension in separate foam panels. 9.The bracket of claim 1 wherein the included angle is less than 90°. 10.The bracket of claim 1 wherein the included angle is greater than 90°.11. The bracket-of claim 1 wherein the bracket is comprised of a moldedplastic material.
 12. The bracket of claim 1 in combination with atleast one foam panel encapsulating at least in part the wing extensionsand at least one said vertical plate member.
 13. The bracket of claim 1comprising a horizontal assembly member with substantially mirror imagefirst and second wing extensions connected together at a seam definingan apex of an included angle, each wing extension including a firstplate member affixed to the first wing extension and a second platemember affixed to the second wing extension.
 14. The bracket of claim 13wherein the plate members are separate elements affixable to the saidwing extensions.
 15. The bracket of claim 13 wherein the plate membersare substantially of equal size.
 16. The bracket of claim 13 wherein theplate members are substantially equally spaced from the seam.
 17. Thebracket of claim 13 further including a bracket element extending fromthe seam and generally bisecting the included angle between the firstand second wing extensions.
 18. The bracket of claim 13 wherein thefirst and second wing extensions define a substantially 90° includedangle.
 19. The bracket of claim 13 wherein at least one of the first andsecond wing extensions include a generally vertical track forcooperation with a plate member.
 20. The bracket of claim 13 wherein theincluded angle is less than about 90°.
 21. The bracket of claim 13including a bracket element extending from the seam for a distancecapable of at least partial encapsulation in a first foam panel spacedfrom a second foam panel at least partially encapsulating at least onewing extension.
 22. The bracket of claim 1 further including a firstfoam panel at least partially encapsulating at least one wing extensionand said plate member.
 23. The bracket of claim 1 further including afirst foam panel at least partially encapsulating at least one wingextension and a said plate member and a second foam panel at leastpartially encapsulating the horizontal assembly member, said first andsecond foam panels being separated from each other to define at leastpart of a mold cavity.
 24. The bracket of claim 13 further including afirst foam panel at least partially encapsulating at least one wingextension and said plate member.
 25. The bracket of claim 13 furtherincluding a first foam panel at least partially encapsulating at leastone wing extension and a said plate member and a second foam panel atleast partially encapsulating the horizontal assembly member, said firstand second foam panels being separated from each other to define atleast part of a mold cavity.